Have writer's block? Hopefully this resource will help librarians identify publishing and presentation opportunities in library & information science, as well as other related fields. I will include calls for papers, presentations, participation, reviewers, and other relevant notices that I find on the web. If you find anything to be posted, please drop me a note. thanks -- Corey Seeman, University of Michigan(cseeman@umich.edu)

Sunday, November 12, 2006

CFP: Special issue Misuse And Abuse Of Interactive Technologies for the journal Interaction Studies

CFP: Special issue Misuse And Abuse Of Interactive Technologies for the journal Interaction Studies: Social Behaviour and Communication in Biological and Artificial Systems http://www.agentabuse.org

Current HCI research is witnessing a shift from a materialistic perspective of viewing the computer as a tool for cognition to an experiential vision where the computer becomes a medium for emotion. So far, investigations into the user emotional engagement incomputing have mainly addressed the elicitation of positive feelings, including enjoyment, happiness, and fun. Research in Funology (Blythe, Monk, Overbeeke, &Wright, 2003) echoes Norman's conclusions about aesthetics: fun matters­–fun interfaces work better. Unfortunately, enjoyment is not something added to an emotionally neutral computing experience. The user's experiences are colored by a host of emotions, many of them negative.

Workshops held at Interact2005 and CHI2006 (De Angeli, Brahnam, & Wallis, 2005; De Angeli, Brahnam, Wallis, & Dix, 2006) suggested that interface design and metaphors can inadvertently rouse more than user dissatisfaction and angry reactions: they can promote a wide range of negative behaviors that are directed not only towards the machine but also towards other people. The idea of a medium for emotion implies the possibility of harming the user,designing computer programs which generate anger, sadness, fear, and grieves.

The goal of this special issue is to address the darker side of HCI by examining how computers sometimes bring about the expression of negative emotions and disinhibited behaviour. We are interested, for example, in the phenomena of human beings abusing their computers. Is ittruly a form of abuse? What consequences does it have on user’s performance and interaction design? Disinhibited behaviours directed against computers can take many forms, ranging from verbally abusing a machine to physically attacking it. In some cases, particularly in the case ofembodied conversational agents, there are questions about how the machine should respond to user abuses. We are also interested in understanding the psychological underpinnings of computer-mediated abuse and in exploring how HCI factors influence human-to-human abuse in computer mediated communication. Key issues include, but are not limited to:

*How does the misuse and abuse of the interface affect the user's experience?*How do different interface metaphors (embodied conversational characters, windows, desktops, robots) shape a propensity to misuse or abuse the interface?*What design factors trigger or restrain disinhibited behaviors?*How does technology-mediated abuse differ from other forms of abuse, e.g., the abuse of people, symbols, flags sacred objects, and personal property?*How can we develop embodied conversational characters or robots that learn to constrain users who engage in verbal abuse? Should ethical values for human societies and HCI be identical? Do we even need to diffuse it?*What social norms and values play a role on technology misuse and what influence does the power distance between the agent/robot and the user have?

Submissions:Research articles should not exceed 8000 words. Contributions should be in British or American English and should follow the American Psychological Association (APA) style. Please submit an electronic file of your paper (preferably in PDF), double spaced, with margins of 3 cm all round toAntonella.de-angeli@manchester.ac.uk

The first page of a manuscript should contain the title of the article, the name, affiliation, email and postal address of each author. Followed by a self-contained abstract in English (max. 150 words) that includes the keywords pertaining to your article, and a biographical note about the author(s) of not more than 100 words.

Important Dates: Authors intending to submit are encouraged to contact Antonella De Angeli as soon as possible to discuss paper ideas and suitability for this issue.

January 19th, 2007: SubmissionMarch 9th, 2007: Notification of acceptanceApril 6th, 2007: Submission of camera­-ready versionJournal Details:Interaction Studies aims to advance knowledge in the growing and strongly interdisciplinary area of interaction studies in biological and artificial systems. It intends to act as a medium for dialogues across the boundaries of academic disciplines for research into social behaviour and communication that has traditionally been presented in separate specialist journals.